UCSON — Speaker Paul Ryan, the top Republican in the U.S. House of Representatives, visited Tucson Wednesday and Thursday to campaign for Lea Marquez Peterson, the GOP candidate in an Arizona race that could help determine which party controls Congress in the upcoming session.

Ryan, of Wisconsin, headlined a fundraiser for Marquez Peterson on Wednesday night, then greeted volunteers at her campaign headquarters on Thursday morning.

The two events were closed to the public, but in a written statement, Ryan’s spokesman, Jeremy Adler, said Marquez Peterson is “one of the best congressional candidates in the country and Speaker Ryan is excited to come to southeastern Arizona to support her campaign.”